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Stop Funding Animal Cruelty
Uncovering the Hidden Impact of Your Investments on Animal Welfare: Learn How to Identify and Support Cruelty-Free Financial Choices for a More Compassionate Future.
Are you supporting Animal Cruelty without knowing it?
It is estimated that up to 500,000 animals suffer or die each year because of animal testing, according to Cruelty-Free International.
While New Zealand has banned animal testing for cosmetics, it is still common practice abroad. Many brands, including some of the world's most popular, still test their products on animals, and investigations show animals experiencing huge suffering as a result. Some companies argue that they only test on animals because it is a requirement in order for products in the Chinese market. Now, a growing number of companies have chosen not to sell products that require animal testing to China.
New Zealanders financially support foreign companies that test on animals through our investments. We invest $2.5 billion in those companies - $1,475m through our KiwiSaver funds and $1,011m through retail investment funds (analysis of September 2023 data).
Companies that continue to conduct animal testing, such as L'Oreal and Estee Lauder (which includes popular brands MAC, Clinique and Bobbi Brown), sell versions of their products in New Zealand that have not been tested on animals.
What does Animal Cruelty Free mean?
Animal cruelty free means no investments in the following:
Read more about our methodology for identifying companies in the animal cruelty category here.
Animal Testing – Where companies are involved in testing products on animals for cosmetic, personal care, household product, chemical and other uses. We do not include companies which conduct animal testing for pharmaceutical products, medical devices, biotechnology, human food, or pet food.
Fur & Speciality Leather – Where companies are involved in the production or retail of fur & speciality leather products (where animals are raised purely for skins).
Factory Farming – Where companies are involved in intensive poultry operations, including managing direct operations which raise birds or managing a network of contracted farmers, slaughtering, packaging and onward sale to wholesalers, retailers, and restaurant chains.
Animal Welfare Issues – Where companies, through their products or operations, cause harm to animals e.g., animal entertainment (such as marine parks and rodeos), livestock exports, whale meat etc.
KiwiSaver & Investment Funds free from Animal Cruelty
Look for our Animal Cruelty Free badges on funds. These have met Mindful Money's robust criteria, and are proven to have less than 0.01% (one hundredth of one percent) invested in companies that test non-pharmaceutical products on animals.
KiwiSaver Funds free from Animal Cruelty (based on September 2023 data)
- ASB Positive Impact Fund
- InvestNow Antipodes Global Fund - Long
- InvestNow Castle Point Trans-Tasman Fund
- InvestNow Harbour Australasian Equity Focus Fund
- InvestNow Mint Australasian Equity Fund
- NZ Funds Balanced Fund
- NZ Funds Inflation Strategy
- OneAnswer Australasian Share Fund
- Pathfinder KiwiSaver Balanced Fund
- Pathfinder KiwiSaver Growth Fund
- InvestNow Pathfinder Ethical Growth Fund
- Sharesies Pathfinder Ethical Growth Fund
- Quaystreet Australian Equity Fund
- Summer Australian Equities
- Superlife Australian Dividend Fund
Investment Funds free from Animal Cruelty (based on September 2023 data)
- Antipodes Global Fund (Pie)
- Antipodes Global Fund Long (Pie)
- ASB Positive Impact Fund
- BetaShares Australian Sustainability Leaders Fund
- BetaShares Global Sustainability Leaders Fund
- BNZ Private Wealth Series Australasian Equity Fund
- Booster Income 50 Fund
- Booster Income 99 Fund
- Castle Point Ranger Fund
- Castle Point Trans-Tasman Fund
- Clarity Dividend Yield Fund
- Clarity Trans-Tasman Value Fund
- Devon Alpha Fund
- Devon Australian Fund
- Devon Dividend Yield Fund
- Devon Sustainability Fund
- Devon Trans-Tasman Fund
- Fisher Funds Australian Growth Fund
- Fisher Funds International Growth Fund
- Fisher Funds Premium Australian Fund
- Fisher Funds Premium International Fund
- Fisher Funds Trans Tasman Equity Trust
- Generate Australasian Managed Fund
- Harbour Australasian Equity Focus Fund
- Harbour Australasian Equity Fund
- Harbour Australasian Equity Income Fund
- Lifesaver Trans Tasman Equity Fund
- Lighthouse Global Equity Fund
- Milford Dynamic Fund
- Milford Trans-Tasman Equity Fund
- Mint Australasian Equity Fund
- Mint Diversified Alternatives Fund
- NZ Funds Global Infrastructure
- NZ Funds Global Macro
- NZ Funds Global Utilities
- NZ Funds Income Generator
- NZ Funds New Zealand and Australian Shares
- NZ Funds New Zealand Infrastructure
- NZ Funds New Zealand Utilities
- NZ Funds Wealth Builder - Inflation Strategy
- Octagon Australian Equities Fund
- Octagon Income Fund
- OneAnswer SAC Equity Selection Fund
- Pathfinder Ethical Growth Fund
- Pathfinder Ethical Trans-Tasman Fund
- Pathfinder Global Responsibility Fund
- Pie Australasian Dividend Growth Fund
- Pie Australasian Growth 2 Fund
- Pie Global Growth Fund
- Pie Growth UK & Europe Fund
- QuayStreet Australian Equity Fund
- Smartshares Australian Dividend ETF
- Smartshares Global Bond ETF
- Superlife Australian Dividend Fund
- Tahito Te Tai O Rehua Fund
- Tempo Aus Companies Fund
- Trust Management - ESG Australasian Share Fund
- Westpac Australasian Diversified Share Fund
If you care about animal cruelty, write to your fund manager asking them to put in place a policy not to invest in companies that test products on animals, use factory farming or export live animals.
Want to know more?
Animal testing is a cruel and inhumane practice that results in the suffering and death of hundreds of thousands of animals every year.
But did you know that your KiwiSaver could be inadvertently supporting this practice?
While New Zealand has banned animal testing for cosmetics, it is still common practice abroad. Many brands, including some of the world's most popular, still test their products on animals, and investigations show animals experiencing huge suffering as a result.
New Zealanders financially support foreign companies that test on animals through our investments, with billions of dollars investing in those companies across our KiwiSaver and investment funds.
Listen to seminar below, where we talked through divesting from animal suffering with:
- Tara Jackson, Executive Director of the New Zealand Anti-Vivisection Society (NZAVS)
- Diana Papadopoulos, Chief Customer Officer at Booster NZ
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